Phillips was a first year pediatric fellow. As testament to his commitment to the health and well being of others, Phillips donated his organs, said John Frohna, vice chairman for education at the Department of Pediatrics at University Hospital and Clinics.

“While Stan was only here a short time, he already made a big impression on all of us,” Frohna said. “His passion for learning and his enthusiasm for the care of newborns was amazing. I know he would have made a significant impact on our training program and on the care of his patients.”

Three other Meriter staff members involved in the crash were taken to hospitals for injuries. Forty-three-year-old Amy Duerk of Oregon and 36-year-old Katherine Hirsch of Madison were treated and released from St. Agnes and Waupun Memorial hospitals, respectively, according to hospital officials.

Nurse Marianne Davidson was in surgery Thursday at University Hospital, Meriter and UW officials said. Her condition was not provided by hospital staff.

The driver of the vehicle, 62-year-old Ross Fleming of Sun Prairie, failed to negotiate a curve while driving north on Highway 26, said Fond du Lac County Sheriff’s Office Sgt. John Toney. Fleming lost control of the vehicle and it traveled over a culvert and landed on its side. Fleming was uninjured, Toney said.

The cause of the crash is unknown at this time, Fond du Lac County Sheriff Mick Fink said Friday.

Dangerous road

Highway 26 is a well-known highway, but many who drive the stretch don’t know how dangerous it is, Fink told The Reporter for a previous story.

“It’s hard to educate the motoring public about some of our more dangerous roads, like Highway 26, because it’s a transient population,” Fink said. “So we try things like speed patrols or erecting barriers in the median of Highway 41 to make our roads safer.”

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Fink said many people traveling north on Highway 151 are often directed by GPS units to use Highway 26 as a shortcut to the Fox Cities. The winding two-lane highway has a long history of fatal crashes, he said.

The crash

Alcohol and drug use are not suspected in connection with the crash, so tests were not done at the scene, but Fleming later requested a blood test to prove he wasn’t under the influence, Meriter spokesman Mike Flaherty said. The results were not completed as of Friday afternoon.

The Meriter Health Services vehicle was on its way to Appleton to pick up a patient when it crashed around 12:40 p.m. Wednesday, Flaherty said. It was on a scheduled non-emergency call.

Although the vehicle looks like a typical ambulance, it is actually a “specialized emergency medical care vehicle,” according to Wisconsin Department of Transportation officials, and is exempt from state inspections.

Everyone in the ambulance was wearing a seat belt, even those in the back of the vehicle, Flaherty said.

Ambulance safety

Fond du Lac Fire Department Assistant Chief Todd Janquart said there is more danger in the back of an ambulance than the front, even if there are seat belts for everyone.

“When you think about the amount of space there is in the back of the ambulance and the amount of equipment, it creates many different challenges than just a standard vehicle,” Janquart said. “The equipment become projectiles when an ambulance tips.”

Janquart said it’s important to note that this tragedy provides a clear example of how important it is for everyone to pay attention to the road while driving.

“I can’t say what happened here, but it’s hard for us as EMS providers to see an ambulance go off the road and crash,” Janquart said. “It’s just a tragedy.”

Sympathies

“The ThedaCare family offers our sincere condolences to the family as well as to the Madison medical community,” said Dr. Raymond Georgen, medical director of trauma for Theda Clark Medical Center in Neenah. “Any life taken prematurely is a terrible loss. The impact of (Phillips’) death will be long reaching into the future of many high risk newborns and their families.”

A prayer service was held for Phillips Friday morning, Flaherty said, and there was “not a dry eye in the crowd.”